Top Fuel driver Steve Torrence (left) is eliminated by Antron Brown during eliminations Sunday November 12, 2017 at the 53rd annual NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. Such events could be in jeopardy under proposed zoning regulation changes for Fairplex. (Will Lester-Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

POMONA >> After reviewing the city’s zoning regulations for the land Fairplex sits on, a Pomona City Council committee is proposing changes to those rules that will be going to the full council Monday, Nov. 20, for discussion.

City Council members could give city administrators direction on what steps to take after reviewing the proposal.

Councilwoman Crisitina Carrizosa, one of the three members of the committee, said Friday the three pored over zoning regulations and tried to understand Fairplex and its needs along with residents’ concerns.

“We were trying to strike a balance,” Carrizosa said.

The proposed changes do not sit well with officials at Fairplex who see them as steps that could send long-time partners of the fairgrounds, such as the National Hot Rod Association drag races, out of the facility, said Miguel Santana, president and chief executive officer of the Los Angeles County Fair Association.

“I think common ground is possible here,” he said, but finding it requires conversations and Fairplex and Council committee members have not had those discussions.

City Council members established the three-member committee consisting Carrizosa, Councilman Robert Torres and Mayor Tim Sandoval in April after residents living near Fairplex urged city leaders to revert to a 1970 version of the so-called F-zone. The F-zone refers to the zoning that regulates uses at Fairplex.

Under an ordinance adopted in 1970, the F-zone authorized 13 different land uses without a need for permits. The uses were all tied to the LA County Fair and anything outside the 13 uses required permits. The 1970 version of the zoning regulations remained in effect until 2004 when City Council members approved a new ordinance that expanded the list of permitted activities under the F-zone recognizing Fairplex had become a center with activities taking place year-round.

Under the 2004 zoning regulations, the city gave Fairplex the chance to expand and allowed changes to buildings without permits.

Nearby residents said the 2004 regulations have resulted in activities taking place at Fairplex that are affecting their quality of life by bringing noise, traffic, trash, crowds and other issues to their neighborhoods.

Of particular concern were electronic dance music festivals, also referred to as raves. Two raves were held at Fairplex in 2015. Promoter Live Nation held the Hard Summer and Hard Day of the Dead festivals at Fairplex that year. Two young women who attended the summer event died of drug overdoses.

In January, the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles County Fair Association approved establishing a moratorium on raves while it goes through a strategic planning process meant to develop a vision for the long-term future of Fairplex and the LA County Fair.

In the course of the council committee discussions, “the majority opinion was that the activities at the Fairplex have gone beyond the intent expressed” by Fairplex and city staff in 2004 and deserve further review and amendments, according to a city staff report.

The committee called on the City Attorney’s office to draft the changes to the F-Zone reflecting committee members’ opinions on how it should be managed, the staff report reads.

Torres said what the committee came up with is not perfect but it’s a starting point.

The City Council could decide to send the proposed changes to the city’s Planning Commission for review before returning to the City Council for adoption.

Should the City Council take that route, Torres said he would continue working on the matter and “continue to listen to (Fairplex) and the community.”

Among the changes being proposed is allowing Fairplex to hold a series of functions and activities ranging from providing child care and holding drag races to exhibitions and having live entertainment “provided such uses are conducted within existing structures and with a maximum attendance of no more than 10,000 persons,” according to the city staff report.

Such changes such can have a significant impact on the events that take place at Fairplex, including the NHRA drag races, Santana said.

After reading over a draft of the proposed changes to the F-zone, Santana spoke with NHRA representatives about the possibility that the races would require securing a permit.

“They said it wouldn’t work for them,” Santana said. The process brings a level of uncertainty to planning the racing events and under such conditions “it would be hard for them to continue in this community.”

Drag racing has its roots in Pomona and is a motorsport that draws local, national and international attention to the city, he said.

“We all feel a sense of pride when we see the community featured locally and nationally,” Santana said. “It would be unfortunate if we lost the sport” because of the uncertainty that proposed changes would bring to organizing the races.

As drafted, the proposed changes lack clarity, do not set standards nor do they define expectations, Santana said.

“I actually believe it’s not the intent of the committee members to eliminate the drags or other events,” he said.

Committee members are supportive of Fairplex, Santana said, but “the document before them has unintended consequences that impact revenue going to the city” from activities and events that take place at the fairgrounds.

Santana said he was surprised by the proposed changes, in part because Council members said there would be discussions among council committee members and Fairplex officials as part of finding ways to address residents’ concerns.

Fairplex and its leaders want to work with the city, he said.

“We want to be responsible. We want to be respectful. We want to be good neighbors,” Santana said.

Torres said requiring a permit in some instances is not meant to be a barrier to carrying out events at Fairplex.

Requiring a permit “allows us to study the proposed events that have a big impact,” Torres said.

Throughout the years, Pomona has been a partner of Fairplex on various projects, he said. Making these proposed changes grows that partnership.

“I believe it makes us a real partner now. It gives us a say,” Torres said.

The open portion of the Pomona City Council begins at 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 20, at Pomona City Hall, 505 S. Garey Ave. The meeting agenda can be found on the city’s website at http://www.ci.pomona.ca.us/